fall on

verb

1. Also: fall upon. to attack or snatch (an army, booty, etc)

2. to fail, esp in a ridiculous or humiliating manner

3. to emerge unexpectedly well from a difficult situation

Idioms and Phrases

Also, fall upon.

Attack suddenly and viciously, as in They fell on the guards and overpowered them . [c. 1400]

Meet with, encounter, as in They fell on hard times . [Late 1500s]

Find by chance, discover, as in We fell upon the idea last Saturday night . [Mid-1600s]

Be the responsibility or duty of someone, as in It fell on Clara to support the entire family . [Mid-1800s] Also see the subsequent idioms beginning with fall on .

Example Sentences

Japan's Yuma Kagiyama, the favourite two weeks after his victory at the NHK Trophy, only managed third place with 88.16 points, after a fall on his quadruple salchow and a mistake on his triple axel.

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It is expected to fall on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, when nearly 3.3 million people are expected to fly, according to Cirium.

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“The truth is, Miss Lumley, I’m sick of it. Sick of missing Christmas parties and openings on the West End, just because they fall on the full moon. I try to keep track, but that blasted almanac won’t stay put.”

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Or you could ransack a grocery store for supplies and a shelf could fall on you and send you to the hospital.

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On Monday night, icy stretches are likely in the far north and across Grampian as rain and sleet showers fall on frozen surfaces.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• allow 
• become 
• consider 
• enjoy 
• experience 
• feel 
• know 
• leave 
• need 
• permit 
• see 
• suffer 
• undergo